Stay for corsets



(No Model.) I

' T. P. 85 A. TAYLOR.

STAY FOR GORSBTS. v No. 374,215. Patented Dec. 6, 1887.

: WITNESSES: V INVENTQRS,

\ UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS P. TAYLOR AND ALFRED TAYLOR, OF BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT.

STAY FOR CO RSETS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 374,215, dated December 6, 1887.

Application filed September 10, 1887. Serial No. 249,339.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, THOMAS P. TAYLOR and ALFRED TAYLOR, citizens of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stays for Corsets and the Like, and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in resilient stays for use in corsets, dresses, waists, and like garments, and has for its object to furnish a device of this description which shall possess the desirable qualities of strength and elasticity, together with abilityto resist the corroding and rotting action of perspiration; and with these ends in view our invention consists in the construction and adaptation of material, which will be hereinafter fully set forth, and then recited in the claim.

In order that thoseskilled in the artto which our invention appertains may fully understand how to make the same, we will describe it in detail, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and in Which- Figure 1 shows a dress stay formed by folding; Fig. 2, a stay made by rolling; Fig. 3, a stay twisted up spirally, and Fig. 4. a stay made up of a plurality of shreds or strips secured together by a thread or cord.

The substance from which we make our improved stay is the lining membrane of domestic animalssuch, for instance, as neat cattle, horses, and similar quadrupedsand the particular membranes which we find to be most suitable for the purpose are the esophagus or gullet, the colon or lower bowel, the main intestine, and the bladder. These, when properly cleaned, dried, and slit, present a flat, tough, and somewhat elastic substance, which is impervious to moisture and of great strength and durability. This we make into stays by (No model.)

cutting into strips of suitable size and folding, as at A, or rolling, as at B, or spirally twisting, as at C, or made up, as at D, from a plurality of shreds or strips tied together.

In the constructions shown at A, B, and C the membrane is preferably twisted or rolled with some. adhesive substance, as soluble sodium silicate. Finally, we may apply as a surface finish a coat of varnish; but this is only for appearance, and we do not deem it as essential. The stay thus made is unbreakable, and its capacity for resisting the action of perspiration and the moist heat of the body renders it durable to a high degree.

\Ve are aware that it has been essaycd to use rawhide for stays and similar purposes; but it is open to the serious objection that moisture and heat, and particularly the two combined, cause it to expand greatly, to lose its resilience, and to become offensive.

We are also aware that liningmembranesuch as intestines and esophagihave been used as a water-proof covering for metal articles-such as steels, trusses, and the like. (See patent to Memberg, No. 214,512.) This, however, differs from our invention, which contemplates using both the spring quality and the heat and moisture resisting property of the membrane, and in employing no other substance in the construction of a stay possessing in a high degree the various qualities which make such articles desirable and useful.

As an improved article of manufacture, a stay for corsets and like garments, and consisting of a sheet of the gullet or colon of the ox or otherneat animal, said sheet conformed by successive foldings with an adhesive substance, as set forth.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS P. TAYLOR. ALFRED TAYLOR.

WVitnesses:

'S. H. HUBBARD,

S. S. WILLIAMsON. 

